This invention is directed toward a structural element for use, for example, as a siderail in a tractor trailer.
Siderails used in vehicles often have a C-shaped or a modified C-shaped cross section. Although siderails of of this type may be formed to meet design bending forces, they generally have inadequate resistance to torsional forces. If a predetermined resistance to torsional forces is required, it often has been necessary to over design the structural element in its resistance to simple bending forces.
One design for structural beams is to provide two opposed and parallel flat plates of elongated shape with a corrugated web fixed between the two flat plates by continuous welds or solder strips, as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,056. The welding or soldering operation is time-consuming and expensive and, therefore, is an area of design improvement. Moreover, it is desirable to reduce the amount of weld or solder in each element, thereby effecting a desirable loss in weight for each element. A basic objective, then, is to produce a structural beam with a minimum amount of weld or solder while achieving the optimal stuctural strength.